


Healing

by kaibacorp



Category: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Cuddling, Domestic, Fix-It, Grief, Multi, Nightmares, Platonic Relationships, Sad, there will be relationships in future chapters idk Which yet tho, this is a sad one lads
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-05
Updated: 2018-01-12
Packaged: 2019-02-28 15:18:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,573
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13274211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaibacorp/pseuds/kaibacorp
Summary: There are a lot of tears shed after Ganon is defeated.





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> this is really sad why do i only have sad botw headcanons. it gets a little happier at the end and will be much happier in future chapters.

There are a lot of tears shed after Ganon is defeated. 

Tears of joy, celebrating their victory and their resilience for the past 100 years, tears of relief over not having to fight anymore, and tears shed at the rush each feels seeing each other again after a little over a century. 

And then there are tears of grief. 

Grief over all the lives lost, time spent apart, cities and towns lost to time and the calamity. But mostly, tears of grief shed over lost friends and loved ones. 

Link and Zelda spend a good amount of time collapsed in each others’ arms, bodies wracked with sobs thinking of Mipha, Daruk, Revali, and Urbosa, the lost champions of the Divine Beasts. Both had their own unique bonds with each of the champions but their grief was equal. 

A part of their own hearts was lost with the champions. 

They also couldn’t help but feel anguish over how things could have been different. Both hylians blamed themselves for the events that had occurred, in a way. Link was unable to protect the champions and seal the darkness as he was supposed to, and Zelda felt she should have worked even harder to awaken the Goddess’ power within her. 

Of course, when these opinions were voiced they were immediately soothed by the other. Link carefully stroked Zelda’s gold locks, humming gently into her scalp as she grieved over what they had lost. And when Link attempted to sign his thoughts with shaky hands, Zelda would hear him and hold him when he was finished or too weak to continue. She shared with him his old memories in an attempt to comfort him and get him to have something comforting from his past. 

The healing process wasn’t going to be easy, but they would help each other through it. 

—-

Zelda resumed her role as princess of the land, and when she turned twenty she would become queen of Hyrule. With her newfound power she decided to rebuild Hyrule from the ground up. Her and Link, still content to be her appointed knight, set out daily to hear the people’s wants and needs. Zelda hires Bolson, Karson, and Hudson to begin construction around the castle so that the population can become more centralized again. Small towns begin to form around Hyrule Castle, followed by small cities. 

Link moves from Hateno village to the new town nearest to Hyrule Castle in order to stay close to Zelda. Before he had moved, he and Zelda would return to Hateno nightly to sleep in Link’s small double bed, holding each other tight like at any moment the other might slip away. Zelda couldn’t sleep in the castle at night, her childhood home reminded her too much of what she had lost and what she had been through. So, she was perfectly content to stay with Link, who wasn’t able to sleep at all until he knew Zelda was safe and content. 

At night, they dreamed. Often they had nightmares, one waking up screaming and the other gently comforting them back to sleep. Close proximity helped fend off the worst of the nightmares, but some still slipped through the cracks. 

Zelda dreamt of her father and mother and how she had failed them. She dreamt of Urbosa’s final breaths, succumbing to the mercy of Thunderblight Ganon. She dreamt of Mipha, her final thoughts of Zelda, Link, and Sidon, her ragtag family she would never see again. And she dreamt of Link. Of her not being able to unleash her powers on the Guardian and Link being lost forever. Of him before he had come to rescue her, bloodied and bruised from horrible encounters with monsters much too powerful for him. Of him forgetting her. 

And Link, he dreamt of old memories. Blurred faces and names he could not quite recall, lost to the years inside the Shrine of Resurrection. He dreamt of the champions as well, and how he had let them down. Revali cursing at himself for not having a plan against Windblight Ganon. Daruk thinking of his wife and children back in Goron city and how he would never see them again. Mipha never knowing if Link felt the same way for her. But most often, he woke up horrified at the thought of something bad happening to the princess. Link frequently bolted up from under the covers, wildly looking for Zelda until he found her and wrapped her tightly in his arms, silently vowing to never leave her again. The dreams went on and on until they became common, however unwanted visitors. 

Until one night, Hylia decided to ease some of their torment. 

In the dream, their surroundings were blinding white. Link and Zelda looked around, only finding each other. Zelda was wearing her billowing white dress while Link wore his usual Champion’s tunic. They threaded their hands together and stared into the blankness. 

“Heroes.” The voice was loud, but pleasant. It filled the entire space, seemingly coming from everywhere at once. It was a female voice, soft and gentle and pleasing to the ear. “You have both proved yourself worthy of serving under me, the Goddess Hylia.” 

Both Hylians looked at each other in shock before falling to their knees before their Goddess. “In return for your century of vigilance and courage, I will grant you the thing you both desire most.” 

A warm feeling passed through both people, as if a weight was being lifted from both of their hearts. Suddenly, the vision of the white space shifted into something entirely different. A view of the Shrine of Resurrection where Link had slept for 100 years. As the pair watched the scene in front of them, four shooting stars fell from the heavens, descending into the Shrine. 

The two abruptly woke, Link brushing tears from the corners of Zelda’s eyes. The following morning they took their horses and set off for the Shrine of Resurrection. 

—- 

Link helped Zelda down into the Shrine, both eager yet hesitant to see what awaited them just a bit farther into the cavern. When they arrived in the largest chamber, both of them lost any hesitancy they previously harbored. 

Four pedestals were fanned out around the central pedestal where Link had originally awoken, and on each new pedestal lay one of the Champions of the Divine Beasts. Zelda let out a choked sob before throwing herself onto Urbosa, the nearest one to the entrance. Link stood, stunned at the entrance to the cavern. 

As Zelda sobbed onto Urbosa’s torso, the Gerudo herself began to stir. As soon as she was aware enough to realize what was going on, she worriedly stroked Zelda’s blonde hair in an attempt to calm her. The pair embraced heavily, Urbosa even shedding a tear or two of her own. She instructed Zelda and Link to wake the others as well and give her some time to come to. However reluctant Zelda was to pull away, it all went away as she saw Mipha laying on the next pedestal over. 

She called Mipha’s name and lunged over to her, nearly collapsing next to her. Link rushed to her side as well, gently stroking her head fins to wake her. Mipha’s eyes fluttered open, hazy and unfocused. She blinked a few times before she was able to react to where she was. She bolted upright and gasped, desperately clutching Link’s arm as if it would anchor her to this world. 

They woke Daruk and Revali in the same way, the two basically throwing themselves onto Daruk’s large form and Link gently shaking the Rito awake while Zelda clutched his wingtips. The champions all gathered together in what could only be described as a pile, everyone resting on Daruk, everyone shedding tears of pure joy. 

Yes, the healing process could only get easier from here on out.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> link and zelda set of on their Hyrule Grand Tour™️ and everyone loves link

Link made an abundance of new friends in the past year or so. Zelda comes to this realization as Link insists on taking a break from piecing Hyrule back together in order to travel together. Reluctantly agreeing, if only because of the promise of seeing the other champions, Link and Zelda set out to tour the vast land. 

The pair decide to follow the worn paths that will take them through the most villages and towns in Hyrule. The journey takes several weeks, but it is well worth it. Zelda had been in dire need of time outside the castle and Link could never stay in one place long anyway. 

Their first stop was Kakariko Village to visit Impa and Paya. Zelda was delighted to visit her dear friend Impa as always and she was tickled to meet Paya. Most of all, she was extremely amused at how flustered Link would get when Paya doted on him. Link knew she would never let him live that down. 

They continued on their voyage through Hateno Village, the previous location of their old home, over the ridges of Mount Lanayru, where they stopped to pay respects to Hylia at the Spring of Wisdom. From there they traveled to Zora’s Domain to visit Mipha, and where Zelda would experience meeting the first of Link’s new friends. 

Link and Zelda had known Mipha’s return to the Domain would be a big ordeal, but they hadn’t expected their own arrival to be celebrated as well. As they passed over the bridge to the entrance of the Domain, Link was immediately recognized by one of the guards, Bazz, as he introduced himself hastily to the Princess. The news of their arrival was quickly spread throughout the city to the ears of the royal family. The pair of Hylians were promptly rushed to the the throne room and announced accordingly before all semblance of formality was lost. 

Mipha was the first to swoop in for a hug, gently embracing Zelda. Zelda was all too happy to return the gesture before noticing Link was getting his fair share of affection as well. His laughter filled the large room, as well as the laughter of another. When the two princesses looked over at the Hylian Champion, they couldn’t help but laugh at the sight. 

Link was being held tight by the Zora prince Sidon and in his excitement, Sidon had lifted Link quite a fair distance off the ground. Link didn’t seem to mind much, in fact he seemed happier than Zelda had ever seen him. As Link was released gently back to the ground he pounced on Mipha as well, holding her tight in his arms as the Zora princess flushed and grinned. Zelda found herself being taken by a flurry of grins and compliments from Sidon as he introduced himself politely and apologized for almost crushing her knight. 

King Dorephan insisted that the Domain hold a ceremony for the Hylians in order to express their gratitude for returning their beloved princess to them. Link and Zelda readily agreed, happy for any chance to spend more time with their Zora friends. Preparations for a feast were made by the King and his children and before anyone knew it, a grand celebration was being held in the Zora Domain. 

The celebration was bright and loud, with food, dance, music, and people. A feast was held in honor of the Hylian champion and the Hylian princess who saved the Zora princess. After the banquet, music began to play and people took to the dancefloor. Sidon whisked Link away to dance, much to Link’s delight. Mipha and Zelda decided to dance together as well while their boys’ laughter carried throughout the ballroom. Both of the princesses were slightly out of practice after not dancing for over a century, but they had a grand time on their own. 

As the night wound down, the four young adults ventured off on their own. Mipha took all four of them up to Vah Ruta, where she directed them all to sit on the tip of the giant machine’s trunk and raised it to its highest position. From there the four could look over all of Hyrule and Link pointed out places he knew and told stories about them through sign while Sidon translated his signs out loud so the girls could keep their eyes on the scenery. 

At one point while Link was regaling the group with his exploits with three different dragons, Zelda looked over and watched Sidon translate. He looked at Link as if everything he signed was of utmost importance, as if Link was the most important thing he had ever come face to face with. 

And Zelda supposed that in a way, he was. Link had singlehandedly defeated Waterblight Ganon and taken down the monster that killed his beloved sister and if that wasn’t enough, he was one of the people that brought her back. 

She glanced at Mipha, who had apparently noticed her brother’s gaze as well, a gaze she knew all too well. Mipha seemed to sense Zelda’s eyes on her, because she turned to Zelda and gave her a smile. 

When the four were falling asleep high in the air, Zelda resting her head on Mipha’s lap while the Zora princess gently carded her fingers through her hair and Link completely unconscious in a sleeping Sidon’s lap, Link and Zelda’s fingers intertwined delicately, they decided it would be best to retire back to the Domain. Zelda and Link shared a room at the inn (the rest of the beds in the Zora Domain were made for Zora, shallow pools of water that were often communal) and slept together in the same bed, holding each other tight for comfort. For once, there were no nightmares to be had. 

The next day, Link and Zelda had to depart. The royal siblings made the Hylians promise to not get hurt on their travels and sent them on their way with misty eyes. Link made a joke about dragging Zelda away from her work again soon and kissed both royals on the cheek before helping Zelda mount her horse and riding away with her. 

Zelda was uncharacteristically quiet, no facts about the landscape, creatures of the area, or even any tidbits of history were heard from her for a while. Link wracked his brain for a way to cheer her up all the way until they came to a stop at a stable in South Akkala. There, he knew just what could cheer her up. 

Zelda watched with curiosity as Link dismounted from his horse and went up to a strange traveling merchant with the largest backpack she had ever seen. The merchant made an off comment about him and Link being married, which made Zelda wonder just how many people had fallen for Link in his travels. 

When Link returned, he showed off what he had recieved from the merchant to Zelda. He held out a small green frog, the exact same kind that Zelda had tried to force feed him all those years ago. Zelda snorted a bit, which broke out into full fledged laughter. Once she had calmed down, Link explained that no, you can’t just eat the frog, but an elixer can be made with it. Zelda seemed effectively cheered up as she began rambling off the different types of creatures in the wild she could try this on when she returned to Hyrule Castle and made a mental note of collecting as many small animals as she could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the ending was a little rushed sorry dbfndkfn


End file.
